


Renewing their Vows

by ScouterFight



Category: Warcraft - All Media Types, World of Warcraft
Genre: F/F, Romantic Wedding, Weddings, political wedding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 19:14:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23832205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScouterFight/pseuds/ScouterFight
Summary: Something I found on Tumblr: "yknow what i need is a classic sylvaina fic where it’s the typical political marriage and they fall in love after getting married and whatnot but they end up rewriting their vows once they do fall in love" - xore -Thanks, friend, for the inspiration! Hope you like it.
Relationships: Jaina Proudmoore/Sylvanas Windrunner
Comments: 23
Kudos: 112





	Renewing their Vows

**Author's Note:**

  * For [xore](https://archiveofourown.org/users/xore/gifts).



> Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.
> 
> AN: Written in roughly six hours for another author, because I saw one of their tumblr posts and that idea just jumped straight into my head.
> 
> Anyway, please enjoy reading.

* * *

She couldn’t believe that they were really going through with this.

It was madness, absolute madness.

She felt as if she was dreaming, trapped in a nightmare that wouldn't let her leave and seemed all too real, but it wasn't a dream or an illusion, this was brutal reality, and she knew it. It was hard to fathom that if anyone had told her just a few months ago that she would marry Sylvanas Windrunner, Warchief of the Horde, Banshee Queen of the Forsaken, former Ranger-General of Quel'Thalas, all around warmonger and uncaring monster she would have laughed in their face and then send them to the bottom of the ocean for good measure.

But sadly, this was no bad joke, at least not anymore. In the beginning, it may have seen like it but now, now it was real, and she was just a few minutes away from giving her life, her future, her freedom away all for the sake of peace.

Hadn’t she sacrificed enough for peace?

Hadn’t she suffered enough?

Jaina Proudmoore, Lord Admiral of Kul Tiras, Archmage, formerly of the Kirin Tor, and former leader of Theramore was so tired, and she knew that everything was going to become even harder. She doubted that this would even work. Peace between the Alliance and the Horde was impossible, time and history had proven that over and over again. But peace between Jaina Proudmoore and Sylvanas Windrunner seemed to be even less possible than that.

She still remembered that third night in Dalaran, during the Peace Summit when the Banshee Queen had proposed the idea, at first it had seemed really like a tasteless joke, but Jaina remembered that the woman had sat down after her proposal and had simply stayed silent, while the other World-Leaders had shouted and argued between themselves.

Jaina, on the other hand, had also stayed silent, she had watched the Warchief, who had lounged in her chair, she had looked for all intents and purposes like someone who hadn’t cared about what was going on around her. And yet, as she had observed the silent Banshee, the strange proposal had begun to take root, at first slowly but the more the mage had thought about it the more sense it had made.

When it had become obvious that nobody around her had even made the slightest attempt at even thinking about the Warchiefs proposal she had known that it was now on her. The Warchief had somehow had managed to roll the ball into her court, and Jaina had known that it had rested on her. She had obviously been the only one who would have been able to actually make a decision based on reason, and not just on emotions.

Jaina remembered glaring at the elf, who had only winked at her before calling for a recess. Before the Warchief had left the room, she had one last time locked eyes with her, it had felt like a challenge as if the Warchief had been testing her. And Jaina had known, even as she had ground her teeth against one another, that her pride wouldn’t possibly allow her to fail. So, she had called for a meeting between the Leaders of the Alliance and had spent hours talking them down, and afterwards, she had explained why she thought that it was a good idea, or at least the best one they had.

In the end, the Peace Summit had ended with a signed Peace Treaty, by all of the Leaders of both Alliance and Horde, even if some had been a tad more reluctant than others.

And now she was standing in front of the closed doors of the Violet Citadel. Inside the other World-Leaders, and her future… wife were waiting for her. She swallowed and glanced over to the man standing beside her. At least he was here with her, even if her mother had refused to come.

“Ready?” Tandred whispered in her ear.

She looked at the sky above them as if this was the last glimpse she would get of its blue beauty, before she answered, with a heavy heart. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

“There is still time to sneak out of her and to sail far, far away.”

She shook her head, even if she wanted to do anything but walk through theses doors. “No, there isn’t. There hasn’t been time for that since I signed that treaty.”

Tandred only nodded, and with a sharp look at the guard standing in front of them, they began to walk, the guards moving in practiced synchro to open the door for the two siblings.

Tandred escorted her through the room until the two reached the Warchief that was standing at the end of the aisle, dressed in armor. Not her usual one, this one looked much more ceremonial, but even with this she still looked as if she would be able to kill half of the Leaders sitting behind them before they would be able to react. Jaina also had avoided picking a dress, probably for a similar reason, her bride had chosen the still practical ceremonial armor.

While neither of them thought that anyone in attendance would be causing a scene, there were still people outside of the Leadership of the Alliance and Horde, and the few invited Neutral guests, that would do anything to keep the conflict between the two large Factions from stopping any time soon.

Jaina swallowed harshly, but tried to hide it as Tandred placed her hands in those of the Warchief, the Banshee hadn't turned around when they had walked along the aisle, and now she was barely looking at her, keeping her eyes almost steadfast on the man performing the ceremony. Thrall had volunteered but Jaina had turned him down, and to her surprise, the Banshee had agreed. A simple registrar had been chosen to marry them, not a priest that was faithful to the light nor one that was a world leader, no they had chosen a simple man from Dalaran to make it official. As neutral as possible, that was really the theme of the entire wedding, and as such there would be no traditions to follow and no real vows to say. They would follow the registrar’s instructions and that would be it. The only thing both women had to do was hold hands, or be connected in some way, and holding hands was really the easiest way to do so, and to each say “I do” once.

Simple, easy, no way to make it overly complicated or in any way, not binding. It was also as far removed from the wedding Jaina had dreamed of as a young woman that it could get.

The registrar began to speak and the last few people sitting behind them in the crowd fell silent. A hush washed over the entire Citadel, and Jaina resisted the urge to forcefully break through the multiple layers of wards and to teleport as far as she could from this ceremony.

When the man turned to her wife to be, the Warchief didn’t hesitate for a second after he had finished speaking.

“Yes, I do.”

Jaina kept her eyes focused on a spot behind her wife to be, she didn’t want this. It was all so very, very wrong, the coldness of the Banshee’s hands in her own, they both had forsaken gloves, or gauntlets as the ceremony still requited them to actually touch. Her fingers were far too cold to be normal, there was no sweat gathering, the woman in front of her barely moved, and her fingers didn’t even twitch.

Jaina only barely registered that the registrar was finished with speaking, and had turned to her.

She cleared her throat and turned her head to face him. "Yes, I do."

This time when she turned her face back around did her eyes connect with those of the Warchief. The woman was looking at her, and while she seemed attentive to those around them, this close Jaina noticed that the dead elf, didn’t seem to be there at all. As if her thoughts were far, far away.

The registrar said a few more words and then the crowd behind them erupted with noise.

And that was it. With a handful of words, the conflicts and animosity between Alliance and Horde were officially over.

Yeah right, only an idiot would believe that.

Jaina just barely registered the urge to scoff, but as she turned her face away from the crowd the roll of her eyes wasn't something she could push down. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw how the Warchief raised an eyebrow at that. They didn't say anything as they stepped down from the dais, arm in arm, and Jaina just barely suppressed a shiver at the coldness her wife seemed to radiate this close.

* * *

Everything felt so different from the last time she had done this. This time the butterflies in her stomach weren't there because she dreaded what was to come, but because she was excited, happy, and so unbelievable content. And yet there were still some nerves involved as she picked at her hair that had already been done. She still mourned the loss of her last blonde streak, but now she had to admit that the full silver-white hair looked good with the dark dress she wore, the color and the highlights had been chosen carefully. A dark lilac to represent the Forsaken, and dark green accents to highlight Jaina's heritage as a Kul Tiran.

“You are very nervous about something you technically already did once," Vereesa commented from her place leaning against the doorframe, her arms crossed lazily in front of her chest.

Jaina smiled as she turned around, her smile widening as she took a step towards her sister in law. "Well, it is not every day that you can marry your wife."

The Ranger laughed and shook her head. "I suppose not. Are you ready then? When I left Sylvanas in the hands of her Dark Rangers, she seemed ready to wear a floor in the hole from all the pacing."

Jaina snorted at the thought. Sylvanas was rarely nervous and most of the time she could hide it behind a mask and a dark glare, but ever since they had started growing closer, she had become unable to hide her emotions when it came to Jaina. It had taken them years, nearly a whole decade, two wars, nearly a civil war, and the end of the world approaching a handful of times, but they had done it.

“Yes, I’m ready.”

Vereesa escorted her to the grand doors that led into the throne room of New Lorderon. The heavy wooden doors were closed and two guards were standing in front of it. Derek was waiting for her there, dressed smartly in a dark admiralty overcoat with his ceremonial sword hanging on his hip he made a striking figure. He grinned at her as she approached and took her hands softly between his. Vereesa slipped through the doors and out of sight as Jaina took a step closer to her brother to fix his collar.

“Approaching your third decade and you still can’t do this on your own, little brother.”

He frowned, “You do know I’m older than you right?”

"Not anymore. You died when you were twenty. Was raised ten years ago, that makes you only barely 30, I, on the other hand, am approaching 50."

She saw the smirk on his face, and let a bit of ice creep onto her fingers, as a warning. “Call me old and see what happens to Forsaken that land near the bottom of the Great Sea.”

Derek laughed and took her hands that were still fiddling with the collar of his coat, and cradled them between his own.

“Are you nervous?”

“A little, and I don’t even know why. We are already married, but-”

"The last time doesn't count, that was for the world, this… this is for you both, this is your wedding. The last one was between the Warchief of the Horde, and the Lord Admiral of Kul Tiras. This is the wedding between Jaina Proudmoore and Sylvanas Windrunner. It is alright to be nervous."

“Thank you, Derek.”

“I’m proud of you little sister. So proud, and I know that father would be as well if he were here.”

Jaina shook her head, as old memories threatened to surface. “I don’t-”

But Derek placed one of his fingers over her lips. "No, no argument, he would be. As mother likes to say, I'm very much like him, in both looks and personality, if there is anyone who can say this, besides mother, of course, then it is me. So, let me say it again."

“Derek-”

“Hush,” he chided her with a soft grin. “Father would be so proud of you. And there is nothing that could ever change that. You did so much good for this world, and now you are finally doing something for yourself. So, it’s alright to be nervous, even if you don’t understand really why you feel like this.”

Jaina sighed. “Alright.”

“Good, then let’s get this show on the road, before your… bride starts to come looking for you.”

The siblings linked their arms, and Derek nodded at the two guards. One Forsaken and one Kul Tiras, judging by the human's armor. She smiled at them and then the two siblings stepped into the long throne room, of the rebuilt City and Keep above the Undercity.

The room was full, filled with friends, allies, and family, but Jaina barely registered any of them, her eyes centered on the woman standing at the end of the aisle. Her back ramrod straight, with her arms crossed behind her back, and a soft grin on her face as every face turned to look at the two siblings and the Warchief for a brief moment remained unobserved.

The distance between them was both endless and far too short. Jaina couldn’t wait to marry Sylvanas, and yet she wanted to keep looking at her. This woman looked much healthier than she did ten years ago during their first wedding.

The gauntness in her checks was gone, and while Jaina wouldn't really describe her as healthier-looking, she looked stronger, and in a much better condition than just a few years ago. The events of the last decade had changed much, but the Forsaken may be the race that has changed the most.

And not just physically thanks to the miracle Sylvanas had managed to do during one of the wars. But their place in the world has also changed drastically, and with that their mindset. While the Forsaken may never become protectors of the living, or paragons of virtue and honor, they were and forever will be protectors of Azeroth in their own ways. And the rest of the world had finally realized that. It had just taken near annihilation to finally make the rest of the races realize that the Forsaken had a place on Azeroth just like any other race did as well.

Jaina let her eyes travel over the clothing Sylvanas wore. Some things would never change, the woman still nearly always wore her armor, even to her own wedding. But there were some things, that had changed.

The armor was much more similar to the style the Ranger-Generals had once worn. There were still spike and skulls present, but the rest flowed more in the famous elven style than in the crude and harsh way it had looked only a few years ago. The color scheme Jaina wore was reflected on what Sylvanas wore that day. Most of the armor had a dark green tinge mixed with black, with a few lilac highlights.

Even though this wedding was for Jaina and Sylvanas the people, they still represented so many people between themselves that they couldn't have resisted, even if they had wanted to, to keep a bit of symbolism out of their choice of clothing.

Jaina smiled at her wife, as Derek placed her hands in the elf’s.

“Hey,” Jaina whispered with a giant smile, as she stepped closer to Sylvanas.

Sylvanas whispered back, her voice so low that the echo nearly completely disappeared. “Hey.”

They both turned to the man that was here to officiate their wedding. Another registrar as they wanted to avoid coming into any conflict, either because of faith or favoritism by choosing one of the other leaders.

"I have been asked by the brides to keep this short because they both have slightly longer vows, so I will do so. But we have gathered here today to celebrate the union of Queen Sylvanas Windrunner, and Queen Jaina Proudmoore. Despite being already married for nearly ten years now, they both have expressed wished to renew their vows here today. Should any of you in attendance have any objections you may now voice them or forever hold your peace."

When no one opened their mouth, except for the surprisingly mischievous daughter of Anduin, but as the girl was only six years old nobody paid her any real mind. The registrar waited a few more moments after Anduin had managed to calm his daughter down, and then he turned his attention to Sylvanas who would be the first one to renew their vows.

“Queen Sylvanas, if you may.”

Sylvanas nodded, but she didn't break eye contact with Jaina to look towards the registrar or at the crowd assembled. She unnecessarily cleared her throat and then she began, unusually shaky but the more words she spoke the more confident her voice became again. Even though Jaina doubted than anyone besides herself had noticed any difference. "Ten years ago, we were in a very similar yet entirely different situation. One that neither of us wanted. We were both prisoners for the sake of our people. Suffering and pain had been our constant companion for years, and we both thought that the marriage between us would just become another sacrifice we would have to endure for those we protect. And for a while, it had seemed like that.

"There were days where I drove you mad, and days where you drove me nearly to committing a few more war crimes, just to end that farce of a marriage. I barely knew you the day we were wed, I had read reports about you and I knew from the few meetings we had that you were both extremely powerful and very intelligent. But there was one factor that I feared would be even more dangerous, your ability to find allies. Both friends and followers flocked to you during your entire life, and I feared that you would manage to win both the dead and the beating hearts of my people for yourself and that you would eventually use them against me.

“And I was right, you conquered the hearts of my people, of those of the Horde, with ease. And those who tried to resist you fell in love with you anyway. And yet, you never used that to your advantage, at least not against me, you certainly used it to your advantage against other things, but never against me.

"You bound the Horde together stronger than anyone could have done before. And I know that if Thrall had appointed you as his successor as Warchief, the young human with the valorousness of the Orcs, the adaptability of the Trolls, the understanding of the Tauren, the defiance of the Forsaken, the endurance of the Sin'dorei, the resourcefulness of the Goblins, the discipline of the Pandaren, the ingenuity of the Vulpera, and the intelligence of the Nightborne, then you would have been able to do so much, the world would be a very different one if that had happened.

“I tried to shy away from you, and considering that we could barely stand to be in the same room during those first few years, it was almost too easy. I don’t think we spent more than a month in the same room during the first three years of our marriage. But then things began to change, slowly but surely. We could talk without snapping at each other, we were able to work on problems together without just charging along our path simply out of spite, we were able to live not just in the same Keep or City, but in the same space.

"I fell in love with you during these cold months of the first War since the Unification Treaty. I just hadn't known it yet. It took your near death, and the near destruction of everything I had worked on ever since I had regained my freedom, for me to realize how much you had begun to mean to me. I won't say that I will ever be easy to live with, but if there is one thing this last decade has shown me, is that even the undead are able to change. And I'm willing to change, for you.

"I love you Jaina Proudmoore, I fell in love with your strength, your courage, your determination, how you leave books everywhere, how I know that if I don't urge you to go to bed that you will spend the entire night over a scroll or book. I love the person who you are and I can't wait to spend so many, hopefully many, many more years with you at my side. I never thought I would be happy again after I lost everything, but you, you make me happier than I have ever remembered being, even when I had been alive.

“During those last few years, you have become my best friend, my confidant, my greatest strength, my greatest weakness, and my greatest challenge. But most importantly, I love you Jaina Proudmoore, and I will spend eternity loving you, you make me a better person, each and every day we spent together.

"With this ring and this ceremony, I promise you that I will spend from now on until the rest of my days with you. I can't promise you that we will always be happy, or that we always will be together, but I can promise you that I will always love you. With this, I pledge myself to you, from this day forward until the end of times."

Jaina wished away the tears that were threatening to ruin her makeup, and she saw Sylvanas’s gentle smile, that normally only appeared on her features when they were alone in their private chambers. She smiled back and took a deep breath as she squeezed the hands between her own.

“I love you,” Sylvanas whispered so lowly, that not even the man beside them could hear them, this was just for her.”

She mouthed the words back, and then closed her eyes for a moment as she gathered herself, this had been a lot to take in. Most of this she had known but there were a few things Sylvanas felt about her or thought of her, that she hadn’t known about. The registrar turned to her, and she took a deep breath as she opened her eyes again. She knew that the vow she had prepared would pale in comparison, and she had something else to say now, then she had just a few minutes ago.

“I had originally prepared a very different vow, but now I feel that I’ll have to change it. I don’t know if anything I will say now will be able to come even close to the vow you just spoke.”

Another deep breath and she felt Sylvanas squeeze her fingers softly, where the older woman had no need for air, and most of her nerves had been brutally beaten into submission, Jaina still required breathing, and her nerves were a lot more active.

“But if there is one thing, I know then it is that I don’t regret a single moment of our marriage, even if it was so very hard in the beginning. Because each moment, each hardship, each angry shout, each storming off, and each and every fight either together or against one another has led us to this very moment. I don’t know where I would be if we weren’t married, and hadn’t been for the last ten years. Maybe I would have died without you at my back to protect me during one conflict or the other.” Sylvanas stiffened at that. Her eyes narrowed only for a fraction and Jaina squeezed her finger reassuringly. Only when her wife relaxed again, did she begin to speak once more.

"Maybe I would have found happiness elsewhere, but as I now remake my promise to never lie to you, I don't think I would have been as happy as I'm today if we hadn't married for the sake of our world. I could promise you many things Sylvanas, but I won't. Because we both know how easy words fade away, and promises can so easily be broken. So, I'm just promising you two things, my unconditional love, and my unquestioning loyalty.

"I will love you wherever I go, be it in life, in death, or if it comes to it even in undeath." A few shocked gasps resonated through the room but neither of them paid them any mind. "

“The day I stop loving you is the day I’ll lose myself to madness. You will never have to fear about a knife to the back, that is being wielded by my hands. Betraying you after so many years is like betraying myself. You will always have an ally in your corner, against the current, and those who wish to harm you and those you care about. Should they accuse you of lying I will support you, without question. Should they accuse you of being a monster and having done something horrible I will first come to you.

"I know you at your worst Sylvanas Windrunner, and I know the Universe at its worst, nothing scares me more than losing you. Those last few days during that war, I was almost paralyzed with fear, those hours when we didn't know if you would return from your mad quest. I feared that I wouldn't know what I could and more importantly would do, should the message come that you had indeed perished.

"You mean everything to me, and I hope this won't ever change. I lost my optimistic world view the day Theramore was destroyed, but for this, I hope that we will have a long and happy future together, but I know that should it not come to that, that we will weather the coming storm together, as one. I love you Sylvanas Windrunner, now and forever. My Queen, my love, with this I pledge myself to you, from this day forward until the end of times.”

This time Sylvanas wiped a few tears away that had threatened to escape Jaina’s eyes. She cradled her face in her hand as they leaned closer.

The registrar spoke once more and Jaina felt awash with joy as he did so. This was real, and compared to the first time, this was everything she had ever wanted and more. "With the power that is granted to me by the Kingdom of New Lorderon, I hereby declare you as wife and wife. You may now kiss."

Sylvanas leaned down and pulled Jaina up slightly, and then they were kissing. Even though they had just kissed this morning, and really for the last few years, this one felt special and important. This was the beginning of a new chapter, and Jaina sneaked her arms around over Sylvanas's shoulders, as her arms did the same around her waist. She felt herself being tipped back slightly and grinned against Sylvanas's lips.

The crowd in the room erupted in noise, shouts of joy and happiness echoed through the room as the two women up on the dais kissed. Jaina nearly lost herself in it but before that happened Sylvanas drew back slightly and kissed her on the forehead. They both turned to the wild crowd and the registrar behind them spoke one final time, as the shouts of the crowd increased in volume.

“I represent now, Queen Sylvanas Windrunner, and Queen Jaina Proudmoore Windrunner.”

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> AN: Nothing much to say, except that any mistakes are my own, and that I’m tired and this has been written in less than six hours, without any real pause so I believe that I could cut myself some slack.  
> Still working diligently on Shadowlands, and quite a few other projects. I’m planning on updating the next chapter, with a few other things, like a fanfiction care package in these trying times. Take car of yourself and stay healthy.
> 
> By the way the summary, is the tumblr post I already mentioned.
> 
> Anyway, I hope that you liked this little piece.
> 
> So, maybe leave a constructive comment down below. Leave a kudos or maybe bookmark the story, that would really make my day.
> 
> Thank you very much, this is ScouterFight and I’m out.


End file.
